1. Historical Context:
– Collapse of Rome and decline of Roman civilization indicators from the 2nd century.
– Germanic migrations from Scandinavia and the impact of the Huns on the Goths.
– Gothic kingdoms’ destruction leading to Germanic migrations in the 5th century.
– Various tribes like Visigoths and Vandals looting Rome.
– The Battle of Adrianople in 378 and the capture of Rome by the Visigoths in 410.
2. Socio-Economic Transformations:
– Urban centers experiencing population decline and trade declining during the early Middle Ages.
– The feudal system with innovations like three-field planting and heavy plough.
– Migration increasing during the early Middle Ages.
– The breakdown of economic and social linkages resulting in localized outlooks.
– Trade and manufacture collapsing, impacting industries like pottery manufacture.
3. Cultural and Political Developments:
– Decline in literary and cultural output in the early Middle Ages.
– Charlemagne’s reign reviving the title of Emperor and the feudal system with innovations like systematic agriculture.
– The Eastern Roman Empire surviving as the Byzantine Empire.
– Charlemagne’s Carolingian Empire influencing European social structure.
– The decline in economic activity reducing the empire’s taxable income.
4. Impact of Epidemics and Technological Advancements:
– The Plague of Justinian causing significant deaths and a decline in European population.
– Major epidemic diseases and the impact of smallpox entering Western Europe.
– Byzantine society having advanced technological base with iron tools and water mills.
– Field-sown beans providing a protein-rich diet and the resurrection of agricultural technologies.
– The emergence of the First Bulgarian Empire and a new system of administration.
5. Regional Developments:
– Rise of Islam with Muslim conquests of Roman territories and the establishment of Al-Andalus.
– Climatic improvements in Western Europe after 700 and the emergence of the Latin West.
– Byzantine Empire under Heraclius facing invasions and dynastic struggles.
– The Macedonian Renaissance marking the end of turmoil and the movement of Germanic tribes triggering Slavic migration.
– Developments in Northern Europe with the spread of Arian Christianity and the emergence of feudal society.
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The early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Middle Ages of European history, following the decline of the Western Roman Empire, and preceding the High Middle Ages (c. 11th to 14th centuries). The alternative term late antiquity, for the early part of the period, emphasizes elements of continuity with the Roman Empire, while early Middle Ages is used to emphasize developments characteristic of the earlier medieval period.
The period saw a continuation of trends evident since late classical antiquity, including population decline, especially in urban centres, a decline of trade, a small rise in average temperatures in the North Atlantic region and increased migration. In the 19th century the early Middle Ages were often labelled the Dark Ages, a characterization based on the relative scarcity of literary and cultural output from this time. The term is rarely used by academics today. The Eastern Roman Empire, or Byzantine Empire, survived, though in the 7th century the Rashidun Caliphate and the Umayyad Caliphate conquered the southern part of the Roman territory.
Many of the listed trends reversed later in the period. In 800, the title of Emperor was revived in Western Europe with Charlemagne, whose Carolingian Empire greatly affected later European social structure and history. Europe experienced a return to systematic agriculture in the form of the feudal system, which adopted such innovations as three-field planting and the heavy plough. Barbarian migration stabilized in much of Europe, although the Viking expansion greatly affected Northern Europe.
